Ranma the Naive Incubus
by brown phantom
Summary: AU RanmaHarem. Due to Genma's carelessness, Ranma ended up affected by a demon. Now he's got until he's seventeen to regain his humanity and save his father's soul. To do so, he has to get stronger, face other demons, and marry all the girls he was promised to. But how can he do that when Ranma isn't even certain how the first demon changed him?
1. Prologue

Prologue

"In you go again boy."

"NO! NOT AGAIN! ANYTHING BUT-YAAAAAAAHHHH!"

Genma closed the door despite Ranma's protests. "C'mon work already. I've been doing this for four days already and he still hasn't learned the Neko-ken yet. All he's done is bleed and become a coward."

He waited a little while longer then opened the door and spraying a foul fragrance downwards to keep the cats from attacking him. He collected Ranma but his son was passed out and close to death when he brought him into the light. "Dammit! I'd sell my soul for Ranma to learn this technique." He all but shouted in frustration.

The lights in the room suddenly shimmered then went out completely, startling Genma for a brief instance. When they came back on, in the corner of the room right in front of Genma happened the strangest thing he had ever witnessed.

First, it was just a corner. But in two seconds at max, a man just appeared from out of nowhere. He didn't appear like he had teleported, but rather like an image on a photograph develops would be a more accurate description. He just sort of faded into existence, sitting comfortably.

"Two words man, eternal damnation. We in business?" He asked like a hipster might.

Genma now got a good look at this man. He was tanned like he spent most of his time in the tropics, and despite his accent Genma wasn't entirely certain this man was Japanese. He wore a bright orange shirt and maroon sweat pants that looked like they had been soaked in blood. His hair was black and curly, like he had a perm, but he had two horns sticking right out of his forehead. His smile showed fangs and he wore black sunglasses but the bald martial artist could swear there was a faint red glow behind them. His shirt had a slogan on it, reading 'Over 99 Million Served' in kanji.

'A demon from hell, here to take my soul.' Genma worried. "Did I say sell my soul? Sorry, slip of the tongue, my mistake. Sorry for wasting your time." He got to his feet, Ranma's unconscious body still in his hands. "I'll just be on my way." He tried to walk out the doorway, but even though there was no door, it felt like he walked right into one. "Huh?"

"You didn't think I'd just let you leave now did you?" The demon asked.

'A barrier to keep me in?' Genma realized, then faced the hellspawn. "It was just an idle comment for crying out loud. A figure of speech. You don't appear to just anyone who speaks without thinking do you?"

"Depends on what they say." The demon said, getting to his feet too. "Here's the deal Genma Saotome-"

"How do you know my name?"

"Oh believe me Saotome, that's the least of your worries. But if you must know, once I came here I gained access to all the information collected about you, by mortal and immortal means. I know your birthdate, age down to the second, blood type, grades you got in school, even your dirty little secrets you want taken to the grave. You have nothing I don't know about."

"For now I'll just take your word on that."

The demon smirked. "You see Saotome, what you've been doing is sort of like a good old demon summoning ritual. A blood sacrifice here, so much collective fear and pain there, desire to get a specific result, and putting your soul up on the market. Adding the curse in too just made it sweeter. And with all that done, I was able to make a claim on your offer. So idle comment or not, your soul is now up for grabs, and if I fulfill your request, your soul becomes mine whether you like it or not. Basically, you're damned if you do, and damned if you don't."

"Well you sir can just go crawling back to whatever level of hell you came from, because I have no intention of selling my soul for my son to be able to perform a martial arts maneuver." Genma declared.

The demon just smirked as if he heard an amusing comment and crossed his arms. "You may not have the standard body of a martial artist, nor the moral grounds of one, but you do have the guts of one, and I like that."

"I'm not going to let a demon talk to me like I'm the immoral one."

"With all due respect Saotome, you _are_ immoral. You took your son away from his mother so he'd grow up in the wilderness. You promised your dearest friend your son would marry his daughter, yet four years ago you made a deal with another acquaintance and promised Ranma to his daughter as well. And you've been throwing your son in a pit of hungry cats all for the sake of learning a technique you've been warned is foolish all because you think your son can prove the experts wrong."

Genma kept his mouth shut. He did see the instruction book say only a madman would try to teach anyone the Neko-ken, but he was so certain Ranma could do it he ignored the warning and went ahead with it. 'Maybe there was more truth to it than I gave it credit.'

"Everything I've done is to make Ranma become a renowned martial artist without equal." He did say when he could.

"Tell me Saotome, how exactly is engaging your son to two different women going to make him a better martial artist?" The demon asked.

"He only needs to marry the one with the dojo." Genma answered.

"Then why engage him to the one without if you have no intention of giving your son to that family? You did take the Kuonji's dowry so you owe them more than you owe the Tendo's. It doesn't matter which one was made first if you take something from one of them."

"That's none of your business." Genma argued, getting mad and frightened of what this demon would do to him. "Just what is it with you creatures and souls anyway? What do you even do with them?"

"Me personally? Not a thing. I'm just one of the guys set to collect those that are open for grabs like yours, and to keep an eye out for when that happens. After I get them, I take them to my managers, who then decide what's done with them. Usually they send them to one of the sections in Hell reserved for people guilty of one specific sin more than others, but sometimes they keep a few souls in reserve to sell back to dark arts practitioners."

"Hell has a bureaucracy?" Genma asked.

"Hell _invented_ bureaucracy." The demon answered.

"That explains a lot."

"And now that I'm here, all I have to do is fulfill your request, just making the transition legitimate and then your soul becomes my property." The demon said, enjoying Genma's fright. "However, lucky for you I'm required to give you an escape clause given the fact your declaration was not intentional."

"An escape clause?" Genma repeated, relieved enough for his heartbeat to almost return to normal.

"Yeah, standard procedure. Let's see..." The demon said, pausing to think it over. "Here you go. You said so yourself that everything you've done, even this itself, has all been to make your son Ranma become a powerful martial artist right?"

"Yes." Genma answered. 'I've got a bad feeling about this.'

"Do you have faith he will succeed in all this?" The demon asked.

Genma nodded. "He is my son. I've put a lot of effort into him becoming the best. I'm positive he could be the best."

"Then prove it."

"Excuse me?"

The demon removed his sunglasses, revealing unholy red eyes. "That is your escape clause. If you can make Ranma become a martial artist everyone can consider stronger then themselves, I'll release your soul and you'll be safe, until you die naturally that is."

"That's it?" Genma asked, trying not to look into his eyes.

"Of course, it won't be that easy." The demon added. "In your efforts to make Ranma stronger, you made a lot of promises for him and none of them with his consent. You promised he would marry a Tendo. You promised he would marry a Kuonji. You promised his mother he'd be a man among men to her. You promised him he'd become the greatest. Obviously you have a lot of faith in your son to do all that. So I expect to see him fulfill all these promises you made for him."

Genma paled. "But... but..."

"But what Saotome? Suddenly doubting your son's talents? Don't tell me you have complete faith in him until he's required to prove it."

"But he can't marry a Tendo and a Kuonji. It's illegal to have two wives."

"You knew that when you made the dual engagements. Surely you had a plan for him to fulfill both deals. Unless you felt that wasn't your concern and it was up to Ranma himself to decide what to do about the mess you yourself created? Tell me Saotome, were you really certain your son could handle the two engagements or did you think the Kuonjis would just give up after you basically robbed them? Or are you more like an animal crapping wherever he pleases and Ranma's the one who has to clean up after you while you're free to make another mess for him elsewhere?"

'Dammit, what do I say here? I had hoped Ranma would marry Tendo's daughter before the Kuonji's found us and demanded anything of us. But if this demon pushes the issue, Ranma has to marry them both somehow. But how?' Genma asked himself.

"Well?" The demon pressed.

"I needed the cart. Selling it got me this place for the past four years so I could train Ranma and put him thru school." Genma answered. 'Maybe he can divorce the Kuonji girl then marry a Tendo. This demon didn't say he had to be married to them at the same time.'

"So you do whatever you want and expect Ranma to be the one to handle the consequences so you don't have to." The demon stated, not asked, before putting his sunglasses back on. "Let's hope he _can_ handle it Saotome, for your soul depends on it."

"Isn't there any other way?" Genma asked.

"'Fraid not man. Here's my offer. You get Ranma to do all those things. Marry the two girls you already promised him to, and any other girl he gets promised to as well in the future, by your design or otherwise. Satisfy his mother's expectations of what he is supposed to be. And become a martial artist of very high caliber. Heck, just to make it interesting, I'll even let him learn the Neko-ken as requested so he has a chance to succeed. If he does all this, you get to keep your soul. If he doesn't, you die and your soul becomes mine. Understood?"

"Umm... how long does he have?" Genma asked.

"Well, considering the nature of the deal, I think seven years is not unreasonable."

"Seven years? Why seven?"

"You want it to be six?"

Genma immediately shook his head. "No, seven is better. But he'd be seventeen by then. It's difficult for a seventeen year old to be legally married."

"You'll find a way. I understand that Nerima where your friend Soun lives lets seventeen year olds marry with parental consent. Get both girls there and he'll marry them both."

"At the same time?"

The demon tilted his head. "You got a problem with that?"

"Bigamy isn't legal."

"Oh I know that. But you set him up with two fiancees, not me. You find a way to make it work. If it makes you feel any better, part of the terms of this deal are that for the next seven years you cannot die. Not until I come to see if he meets the terms of the deal of course." Genma looked relieved. "But that doesn't mean Ranma can't die. I'm leaving in that little challenge for him. And if he does die, the deal is off and you lose your soul early."

Genma looked worried again. "Is this really the best you can do? Are you certain you can't just pretend you didn't hear me?"

"Sorry man, no can do. I've got a job to do and this is it. Seven years to make Ranma all the things you told others he'd be, or you go to hell. Do we have a deal?"

Genma looked at his son, who looked paler than he did before. "Please, can you heal my son too? I'm worried he's dying from what I put him thru. If he's not helped, he may never have a chance to do any of this regardless of the deal."

The demon looked at the child in the bald martial artist's arms. "Well, I guess it's only fair I allow the boy who has to do all the work at least be fit enough to be at the starting line. Okay I will, but I'm going to have to add one more challenge to make it even."

"How is that even?" Genma asked.

"I'm already given you conditional immunity from death for seven years and the martial arts technique you requested for your son? How fair do you expect a demon from Hell to be?"

Genma sighed. "What is this extra challenge?"

"I'm going to make Ranma a demon, one that will be appropriate for this little challenge for you both. He'll retain his personality and if succeeds in seven years I'll return him to normal."

Genma gasped. "A demon? No!"

"That's my final offer Saotome. Take it, or leave your soul."

Genma winced and looked down at his son one last time. 'Ranma, forgive me.'


	2. Chapter 1

_Just so everyone understands this is an AU story, meaning that even though it doesn't completely change canon it will not follow it entirely. There will be some OOCness and non-canon events. Also, by friend request, this story is a harem with Akane, Kasumi, Shampoo, Ukyo, and Hinako confirmed._

_Lemons and limes will be included later on in this story so if you are not of age to read then don't. I will not have my work jeopardized by people claiming I did not warn them of what to expect._

Chapter 1

'Bringing Ranma from China. Should arrive soon. Genma.'

"Oh, at last. Ranma is coming." Soun said, joyous despite the tears running down his face. Suddenly he bolted to his feet and ran thru his house.

"Kasumi!"

In the kitchen was his oldest daughter, and out of all of them she probably took after her mother the most. She was a mature woman, chestnut brown hair worn in a low ponytail often draped over her right shoulder, dressed in a purple blouse, red dress, and yellow-white apron. At the moment she was washing dishes from lunch.

"Yes Dad?"

"Head to the dining room. I've got great news." He said before running off.

"Nabiki!" Soun said when he opened his second-oldest daughter's bedroom door. She was at her desk going over one of her ledgers, most likely seeing something about her marks on others that could be relevant soon. She was still in high school but at times seemed to be more adult than her own father. Her hair was brown like her sisters but a darker shade, cut in a pageboy style, and she wore a light blue T-shirt with tan shorts.

"Yeah?" She asked, looking at her father out of the corner of her eyes rather than give him her full attention.

"Come down to the dining room right away. I've got something for all you girls to hear." He said before again leaving without getting a response.

"Akane!" He said, knocking on his youngest's door, only to get no response. "Akane?" He knocked again, and was rewarded with nothing. "Where is that girl?"

"I think I know." Nabiki said, leaving her room and heading downstairs.

Her suspicions proved correct, for her younger sister was training in the family dojo, working thru one of the katas of the Anything Goes arts her family practiced.

"Hey Akane." Nabiki started, getting her sister to stop exercising for a moment. "Dad has something we wants to tell us all."

"Any idea what it is?" Akane asked.

Nabiki shook her head. "Nope, but I hope it's not expensive whatever it is." She left as Akane wiped some sweat off of her then followed.

As soon as all three of his daughters were seated, Soun sat across from them, ready to give them the news. 'I wonder which one of them will accept the offer. Kasumi, the girl who's always wanted a relationship but never had the time to? Nabiki, the girl who has great people skills but not all the right ones? Or Akane, the girl who is unsure what she wants but probably has the most in common with Saotome's son? Hopefully I'll find out soon enough.'

His inner monologue done, Soun cleared his throat and addressed his children. "Girls, as you are aware, we here in the Tendo family use the Anything Goes school of martial arts. What you don't know is we are not the only ones. There is a second school, run by a dear friend of mine. The two of us trained together under one master." Soun could not stop himself from checking the area, afraid his master would magically appear due to his mentioning. Seeing nothing, he continued. "After we finished, we took our schools in separate directions so they could diversify more, but we agreed before any of you were born that someday our two schools would reunite, to create a better school than we ourselves learned in our youths."

"How so?" Akane curiously asked.

"Well you see, my friend Saotome has a son named Ranma, and the two of them have been traveling together for years learning new things. Recently, they've even been to China and not too long ago returned."

"Wow, China." Nabiki said, impressed.

"I bet he'd make a pretty good sparring partner." Akane thought out loud. 'I just hope he's not like Kuno.'

"Are they coming here?" Kasumi asked. 'Why else would Father tell us about them?'

Soun nodded. "Yes. I told my friend a few years ago that if he wanted to come by with his son he could. I had always wanted you three to meet my friend's son. You see, his father and I made a promise to each other that to ensure our schools would continue as a united one, our children would run it together. And the best way for that to happen, is if one of you were to marry Ranma."

All three girls were understandably surprised and daunted.

"Dad, are you basically setting us up for an omiai?" Akane asked.

"You could say that."

"Tell us about him first." Nabiki asked. "Is he cute?"

"How old is he?" Kasumi inquired.

"He's not egotistical is he?" Akane wondered.

Soun just smiled. "To be honest girls, I've never really met the boy. I was there to celebrate with his father when he was born, like he was with me when you three were born, but I wouldn't say that counts. Besides, he's been traveling with his father for years now, so how exactly am I supposed to know what he's like?"

"I suppose that makes sense. So what can you tell us about him?" Kasumi responded.

"He should arrive today so I believe I'll let him introduce himself." Soun said.

* * *

Within the hour much to the Tendo's surprise they got a visitor, and of course they all expected it to be the Saotomes. But they were truly surprised to see at their doorstep a panda on its hind legs carried a struggling girl on its shoulder like she was a sack of rice.

The family backed away but weren't about the let this strange animal walk inside their house. It got weirder, and yes it could get weirder, when the panda waved to them with it's free paw then reached into a pack it wore and took out a note, which it handed out for them to take.

"What's going on here?" Nabiki asked.

The girl on the panda's shoulder turned to face them. "If this big lug would let me down I'd tell ya."

'Red hair? It must be dyed.' Akane thought.

Soun gingerly took the note from the panda. "Soun my friend, if you're reading this then my suspicions were correct and I'd get wet before I got here. I'll just get to the chase, remember those stories you-know-who told us about the cursed springs of Jusenkyo in China? Turns out he wasn't lying. I'm a panda now."

Soun's eyes then darted from the note to the panda and back and forth again. "Seriously."

The panda nodded and pointed back at the paper, where Soun read the last part. "If you need to be convinced, get my son and I hot water."

"Dad, you can't believe this? People don't just turn into pandas." Nabiki stated.

"It's true. We're cursed. I'm actually a boy and he's a bald fat old man, but the rain did this to us." Ranma told them. The panda growled and placed the girl down but tried to punch her in the head, which Ranma blocked.

"Calm down you two." Kasumi told them, making them stop. "Now, what's all this? Could you be more specific?"

Ranma nodded. "I can, but hot water will help. Not boiling hot, bath temp is perfect."

Kasumi nodded and walked off to the kitchen. Meanwhile, Nabiki and Akane just looked Ranma over.

"You're really a boy?" Akane asked, seeing how feminine Ranma looked right now.

Ranma nodded with closed eyes. "Yeah, I'm cursed to become this every time I get wet. You can thank Father of the Year here for that." She said, pointing at Genma as she did. The panda growled again and tried to hit his son-turned-daughter, who ducked and blocked the follow up.

"Good reflexes." Akane complimented.

"Thanks, though it took me a lot of practice to get coordinated as a girl." She said.

"I can understand. New height, center of balance, weight placement, that would be tough on anyone."

Ranma shrugged. "No problem for me. Got it done in a day."

"Oh yeah?" Akane challenged. "Then prove it in the dojo you can move as well as a real girl."

Ranma smiled and nodded, and Akane led her into the well-sized dojo, grateful she was still wearing her yellow gi. "Ready?" She asked, taking a stance where her right leg was behind her and both fists were clenched but the left one was out front and the right one was pulled back.

Ranma stood opposite her and stood completely relaxed, looking more like she was going to referee than participate, and nodded. Uncertain since she saw no stance, Akane decided to go ahead and begin the fight. Rushing in, she tried to hit the redhead-s gut mainly to test her reaction. Ranma reacted by swinging her left arm counter-clockwise to deflect the blow then in the same move grab Akane's arm to keep her from following up right away.

As expected, Akane briefly focused more on getting her arm free than continuing her attack. With some quick thinking, Ranma yanked her arm then moved out of the way except for one foot then let go, the combination of which tripped Akane and made her fall on her stomach. Before she could get up, Ranma lightly pressed her foot on Akane's back.

"Looks like I beat you."

Akane looked up at the redhead, who didn't look condescending at her. "I guess so, but you barely fought back."

"I don't like fighting girls." Ranma said, removing her foot. "Girls are a lot cuter when they're fought for, not fought against."

Somehow, this made Akane blush, but she hid it as she got back on her feet. "As valiant as that may be, I have no plans for being a damsel in distress."

"Considering you're a dojo child, I'd be disappointed in you if you did." Ranma muttered.

Kasumi came into the dojo carrying a kettle. "Ranma, here's your hot water. I already gave your father some, and I was really shocked to see him change. Nabiki still can't process it. But here you go."

"Thanks." Ranma said as she took it, but hesitated to use it. "Umm... I don't think either of you really want to see me change."

"Why not? Everything will still be covered up right?" Akane asked.

"Yeah but... my male body isn't much better. If anything it's weirder."

Both Tendo girls looked really confused. "How so?"

"I'd rather not say. Please just give me some privacy." She requested.

Kasumi and Akane looked at each other, then back to their guest. "Okay then, we can do that." Kasumi then led Akane out of the dojo. Akane was hesitant to leave since she hadn't yet seen the change.

Ranma used the hot water to turn back into a boy. "I hope I don't have to admit to them about the other thing." He said to himself as he straightened out his shirt and pants to accommodate his male form. "What girl could like a guy like me?"

* * *

"What do you think of him, or her, sis?" Kasumi asked.

"Not sure, but I think he's as nervous about this whole set up as we are." Akane said.

Kasumi nodded. "I bet having some kind of curse on him doesn't make it any easier. Even if we don't marry him, while he's here we should make an effort to make him feel comfortable, not ostracized."

Akane nodded. "Yeah, you're right. It's the right thing to do."

Kasumi wrinkled her nose. "You're a little sweaty Akane. Maybe you should take a bath."

"Okay." She then headed upstairs, and was followed by Kasumi.

"Mind if I join you? I ordered take-out tonight so I've got nothing else to do."

"Sure."

* * *

Ranma walked down the hall on the ground floor, trying to get a handle on the property. 'Pops said we're going to be here for a while, even though I keep telling him we need to go back to China. Might as well see what it has.'

Walking down the hall he ran back into Nabiki. "Oh, hi." He said, uncertain what else to say.

Nabiki immediately noticed the physical similarities between this dark-haired young man and the red-haired young woman from before. The clothing and hair style were the biggest ones. "Wow, so this is your normal form?"

"Yep." He then saw she had a bucket in her hands. "Hey, don't-!"

Too late, she splashed him and he turned back into a girl. "Wow, this is so strange. Cold water to change and hot water to change back. I just know there's a way to make a few yen off of this."

Ranma frowned and shivered, for that water was really cold. "Why thank you. I needed an ice bath." She said sarcastically.

"Well the bath's upstairs if you need to warm back up."

Ranma nodded and left an amused Nabiki who went back to her business. 'Hey, I didn't use all the water in the kettle. Might as well warm up a little first, but a bath does sound good.' She grabbed the kettle which was still in the dojo and used the remaining water to become male again. 'Now the bath.'

He headed upstairs and found three of the rooms up there were labeled with the girl's names. Three rooms weren't, so he carefully checked the first. It was a lucky guess, this one was obviously the bathing room/laundry room. Ranma went inside and undressed, looking around to make sure no one could see his male form without any clothes on. After putting the clothes away, he grabbed a towel and opened the screen door separating him from the actual tub.

Unfortunately, he had been so focused on not being seen he overlooked to clothes already stored inside the baskets in the cubbie. So when he opened the door, he was very surprised to see both Akane and Kasumi in the tub, washing up and very very naked.

Ranma stood there like a deer in the headlights, and since there were four 'headlights' in front of him he was more frozen than normal. The two girls were shocked too and about to yell at him to get out, but something caught their eyes and made them unable to speak.

Now they understood why Ranma was hesitant to change in front of them. Right now, they could see his male body... wasn't exactly normal. In fact, it was unlike any other male body they had ever seen before.

Ranma apparently had two bat-like wings and a pronged tail he had been hiding, but now they were clear for all to see.


	3. Chapter 2

_Word of warning everyone, in this story there will be some changes to the characters personalities due to reasons that will be revealed at the end of this chapter. But for the most part, here the characters will have a little more common sense than they did in canon. Not enough to completely change them, but enough so they don't seem so absurd and single-faceted._

Chapter Two

For a moment the one boy and two girls just stared at each other in silence.

'Oh crap! They know!' Ranma panicked.

'Is this part of his curse?' Akane wondered.

'Oh my!' Kasumi was at a loss for words.

Without saying a word, Ranma turned around to exit, which allowed the girls to see that his unusual features were indeed attached to his body. However, still in a bit of denial and curiosity, Kasumi reached out and grabbed his tail.

'It feels like real flesh.' She told herself before she yanked on it as Ranma tried to run off.

The result was much like a dog running until the leash suddenly went taut. Ranma was jerked backwards by the action and fell to the floor, his head hitting the edge of the furo. And it sounded very painful.

"Kasumi what did you do? You might have cracked his head open." Akane reprimanded.

"Sorry. I couldn't control myself for a moment." The older girl said, briefly looking at her hand. 'Strange, my palm and fingers are tingling.'

Akane immediately got out of the tub and checked on the boy. "I don't think he's conscious." She leaned in closer. "Oh no, I think he isn't even breathing." When she touched him, she felt a rush of heat on her skin, but barely noticed it.

"Stay back, I remember CPR." Kasumi said as she got out of the tub too. At the moment the two girls didn't have time to think about their modesty; Ranma was unconscious because of them and they had to at least try to get him conscious again before they worried about their state of attire.

Kasumi opened Ranma's mouth and exhaled into him, then she pressed on his chest in a pattern to get him breathing again. The entire time she did so, her hands and mouth felt a little hotter than normal. Not painfully hot, but noticeably warm.

After a few times Ranma coughed violently, making both girls relax a little. When he finished, he clenched his eyes shut as if pained, and grabbed the back of his head. "Ugh, what happened?"

"You tripped and hit your head. Here, let me check." Akane said before snaking her hand under his head to feel his scalp. No blood was felt, but that sensation of heat was there again for her.

Ranma opened his eyes and looked at the two girls. His eyes first went to their faces, the parts he intended to see, but once he discovered their bare breasts were in his vision his eyes struggled to stop focusing on them.

Both girls saw where his eyes went and covered their chests. "Pervert." Akane said, but she didn't look or sound like she was going to hit him for this.

"Well there are two beautiful naked girls in front of me. Where else am I supposed to look?" He asked on impulse, making both girls blush.

"As flattering as that is, please be sure to respect our privacy in the future." Kasumi told him.

He nodded until his head pounded from the movement, forcing him to groan in pain. "Ow... wait, now I remember what happened. Why did you grab my tail?"

"I think the real question is why do you _have_ a tail?" Akane asked back.

"I asked first." Ranma pointed.

Kasumi cleared her throat. "I was curious and had to see if it was really real."

"Oh it's real all right." He said as he massaged a wing that ached. "Ah, I think you may have dislocated my wing. It hurts like hell to get it back in place."

"Why do you look like this? I thought your girl form was your cursed form." Akane asked, trying to keep her eyes off his privates once she noticed it was as obvious as her breasts had been. Thus she was now getting three towels to cover them all with.

"My girl form is my cursed form. This is normal for me." He told her.

Akane, covered up now, handed him a towel. "How is this normal?"

"I don't know, but I've been this way for about as long as I can remember." He said as he covered himself.

"What do you mean?" Both Tendo girls asked.

"I mean I've been like this long enough to barely remember what I was like before. I wasn't born this way, I got these when I was ten."

"What happened?" Kasumi asked.

-Flashback-

Ranma, ten years old, slowly woke up in his bedroom. Before his eyes could focus properly, images of cats trying to rip him to shreds flooded his mind and practically caused a panic attack. He sprang up from his futon and tried to run somewhere, but got tangled in the sheets and tripped.

"Ranma?" Genma said as he came right up to his waking son.

"Dad, I'll be good. Please don't put me in the pit again. Anything but that." Ranma quivered, shaking like a beaten puppy left in the cold.

If Genma didn't feel remorse for what he had his son thru before, he did now. His paternal instincts at possibly the strongest in his life since Ranma was a baby, he held his son close to himself to calm him down. "It's okay Ranma. The training's over. You won't ever have to do that again."

"Did... did I learn the Nekoken?"

"We'll find out for sure later, but yeah, I'm sure you did. But... but something happened that I didn't expect."

"What?" Ranma curiously asked.

"Let me show you." He said, taking his son to the one mirror they had. He stood before it and pried Ranma away, making Ranma see that he had wings sticking out behind him, easily visible since he was shirtless, and a long tail too.

Ranma gasped. "What happened to me?"

Genma looked like he didn't know how to answer. "I don't know, but it doesn't mean you're a monster son. You're still you, you just have to hide these things until we can have a doctor remove them safely."

Ranma looked away, unable to face his reflection now.

-End Flashback-

"My old man did find a doctor we could trust to have them surgically removed, but as you can tell they don't exactly stay gone." Ranma explained. "They always grew back a week later, exactly seven days. For the entire time I was in school I had to spend my Sundays in surgery amputating these things only to get them back the next Sunday and remove them again."

"How awful. How could you afford it?" Kasumi asked.

"The doctor was lenient and curious, and Dad had to work for him in that time. Until he heard there was a place in China he thought could cure me. A place called Jusenkyo. We went there, told it had springs that could make a person become something else if they jumped in the water. I wanted to be a normal boy and Dad kinda wanted to be a little younger and with hair, but the guide didn't have the best grasp of Japanese and we fell in the wrong ones. I ended up in the girl spring and Dad the panda spring."

"Do you still have the wings and tail when you're a girl?" Akane asked.

Ranma shook his head. "No, when I'm a girl my body's normal. For a girl at least. I think anyway. I'm not exactly sure what's normal for a girl. I never really had a lot of time to be around girls."

"What about at school?" Akane asked.

"All boy school. Dad thought it would help me feel more like a normal boy again if I was in one at the time."

"You must have felt very alone." Kasumi said sympathetically.

Ranma looked away. "I did alright."

"Have you stopped cutting them off or do they regrow every time you change sex?" Akane asked.

"We couldn't keep amputating them in our trip so I had to learn to live with hiding them under my clothes. I haven't had a chance to see if the curse affects the regrowth. I need to find a good trustworthy surgeon soon to find out."

"What if you can't?" Kasumi asked, nervous about the possibility.

"Then I've need someone else to cut them off. Surgeons at least make it painless."

"Have... have you ever used them?" Akane curiously yet nervously asked.

"If you mean can I fly, yes. I had plenty of time and privacy in China to test that out."

"What's it like?" Akane asked eagerly.

"Once you get over the shock and learn how to coordinate yourself, quite fun."

Akane smiled. "Lucky you."

Ranma snorted. "Yeah, lucky me." He did not sound the least bit agreeable. He then grabbed his towel and tried to stand up. "I'm going to get out of your way so you girls can finish up here."

"Can you even stand up after that hit?" Kasumi asked, noticing he was a little wobbly on his feet.

"I certainly can't hang around two naked girls for long." He replied.

"Why? Are you not attracted to girls?" Kasumi asked.

Ranma couldn't help but regain eye contact with her. "Of course I am. That's the problem."

Akane looked confused but Kasumi looked understanding. "Ah, you're worried you might do something that we wouldn't find appropriate and then hate you for it, am I right?" Ranma just nodded, and an unusual idea came to Kasumi. "Akane, if Ranma is going to be living her for a while like Father wants, it wouldn't be good if he's afraid of us always judging him right?"

"No." Akane said. 'What is she getting at?'

Kasumi closed her eyes and took a deep breath, steeling herself for this. "Ranma, I'm going to do something so you don't feel awkward around us so much. You might be embarrassed for a while, and we will too, but once that passes things should be fine."

"What are you thinking Kasumi?" Akane asked.

"Akane, stand up with me. Ranma, do not look away." The older girl said as she stood straight up. Unsure about this, Akane nonetheless stood up too. Ranma looked at both girls but he looked like a lamb waiting to be slaughtered. With one fluid move, Kasumi reached out and took away Akane's towel while dropping her own. Both girls were now exposed to him with no water in the way to hide them.

Ranma's eyes almost popped out of his skull and he felt back on the tiles, passed out. Akane's entire body turned red from her blush and she covered herself as best she could. "Kasumi! What the hell?"

"Akane, Ranma is clearly afraid we're going to hold what he did against him. It was an accident he walked in on us, you know it and I know it, but we shouldn't hate him for it. Problem is Ranma thinks we will. I'm hoping that by willingly letting him see us like this, he'll see we won't judge him first and ask questions later."

"You really think flashing him would help?" Akane asked, not seeing her sister's logic.

"Well what would you have done sis? Threatened him with bodily harm if he looked at you ever again? You really think that would help you get along with someone who's going to be living with us for a while?"

"You've got a point, but I still think there was a better way than this." The youngest Tendo told her sister then looked at the unconscious boy. 'Will he see me as sexy? Or ugly?'

* * *

Genma was in human form again and he was in the room Soun loaned him and Ranma, putting away what he carried around on him. "I hope Ranma can get along with the girls here." He said to himself.

The lights flickered for a brief second. "For your sake I hope so too."

Genma froze, recognizing that voice anywhere. "You again?"

"What? Can't a guy check up on his investment?"

Genma stood up and turned to face the demon he inadvertently conjured up six years ago. The demon looked the same as before, only this time his orange T-shirt had a different slogan that read 'My parents went to Hell and all I got was this lousy T-shirt'.

"What are you really here for?" Genma asked, looking his bravest at the moment.

"I told you, I'm checking up on how things are going. I'm actually surprised you waited this long to bring Ranma here."

"It would have been pointless to bring him here any sooner since he couldn't marry when he was younger." Genma said.

"True, but he could have used the time until now to warm up to a girl. And trust me, he would have needed that." The demon replied, sounding almost like he was teasing the fat martial artist.

"What are you implying?" Genma asked, not liking the way the demon was talking now.

"Oh nothing really. Just that I may have made things a little harder for your son in the time since we made the deal."

"What?" Genma asked, shocked. "What is wrong with you?"

"I'm a demon. It's what we do."

"But that's completely unfair."

"Demon." The creature reminded him.

"What exactly did you do?" Genma asked, afraid of the answer.

"Oh not much, just a nightmare here and there for the girls and the occasional subconscious fear preyed upon to make them resist your son a little."

Genma frowned. "Demon or not, this is downright cheating. You're actually going out of your way to ensure Ranma can't complete the challenge."

"Actually I haven't. See, if I had then that would have voided our little deal and you automatically would be free from us. Not in my best interest to do that myself you dig? But there's nothing wrong with me adding the occasional challenge or hurdle to your son, not as long as he is capable of overcoming it."

"What are these hurdles you've concocted?" Genma asked.

The demon looked quite amused. "Well, since I like seeing you get scared, I suppose I'll tell you. Ranma has to marry a Tendo, but you never said which one. So to make things interesting I made it so none of the three girls will be eager to take the role as his wife."

Genma was wide-eyed then angry. "That's cheating."

"Oh no, they still can fall in love with him before the deadline. It just won't be easy for them to, especially since I preyed upon their fears. The one called Kasumi, she's afraid of putting her own pleasure above her family so she will probably never seek out a mate as long as she believes these people need her here. The one called Nabiki, she's afraid of forming intimate connections with anyone outside the family and instead prefers to see people as resources rather than company. And the one called Akane, she's afraid of failure or being second-best to someone, so she's likely to see Ranma as a threat more than a friend if he does things better than her."

"So all three of them are going to be reluctant to even consider him an option for the engagement?" Genma asked.

"Yes, but they can be persuaded. I believe two of them are already influenced by his demon nature now, so things should be getting interesting soon enough." The demon said with a smile.

"Wait, before you go, I must know what kind of demon you made Ranma and what he can do." Genma insisted. Right after Ranma had changed the demon had vanished, leaving Genma unaware what kind of demon Ranma had been all these years.

"I could tell you, but maybe it would be more fun if you and him didn't know. At least not yet."

"So you came here just to tell me that the girls here are going to resist marrying my son?"

The demon smirked and crossed his arms. "You could say that. Also, while I'm on the subject, the Kuonji girl is heading your way and I've taken the liberty to guide her here sooner. Good luck getting Ranma to get close to a Tendo while she shows up and points out how you really value honor."

Genma frowned at the demon. "You actually want my son to fail."

"Well it is more profitable to me if he does. You should have realized it by now. I'm just not allowed to make it impossible for him to succeed. The girls will resist, but they can be won over. Same for the Kuonji girl, who I made afraid to embrace her feminine side and is more likely to attack Ranma than anything else when she sees him."

Genma frowned and made himself stand straighter. "My son will succeed and defeat your sick twisted cheating. You yourself said he's already started on two girls and it's only been one day. He will finish everything in a year."

"Don't forget he has to meet your wife's standards and become a martial artist of unquestionable caliber within that year too." The demon pointed out.

"He will succeed."

"Well if he does, I at least will get some satisfaction out of this. Hope you can handle being a grandfather within a year Genma Saotome." The demon said before he suddenly vanished into thin air as if he was never there.

'What did he mean by that? Ranma's not going to get that far this soon, will he?' Genma worried. 'I really wish I knew what all to be prepared for.'


	4. Chapter 3

Chapter Three

That evening the two families were gathered together in the dining room with the table pushed off to the side to provide more room. Ranma was in his normal male form with his wings and tail hidden under his clothes like he was used to, and he could not bring himself to look at Kasumi or Akane right then. Which probably wouldn't have mattered as they had a hard time looking at him as well.

'What was I thinking? I must have had a lapse in judgment in the heat of the moment. He must think we're loose women now and have no respect for us anymore. I just wanted him to feel less scrutinized, it made so much sense right then, but now... no, it was the best thing I could do with limited options available. I'll just have to make him understand that such a thing won't be regular. Though with the kind of body he has it wouldn't be bad to see that more than once.' Kasumi thought, berating herself then reassuring herself.

'I don't know what to think of this boy. Sure he seems respectful enough to keep his hands to himself, but he is a boy so he's bound to not want that for long. Question is will he want me or one of my sisters? I'm not sure which would be better. If he wants me, how do I keep him away until I'm ready? And if he doesn't want me, then why? Which one is better, a boy who wants to be perverted to me or a boy who says I'm not sexy enough to make him want that?' Akane asked herself, not sure what she wanted.

"So what's the story here?" Nabiki asked.

"It's hard to explain, so please withhold any questions you have until I'm done." Genma said, moving his glasses back in place as he spoke.

"I can explain part of it first if you want Saotome." Soun told his friend who nodded. With that Soun faced his daughters. "Girls, back when my friend and I were students ourselves, we had been told of a place in China said to be cursed. A legendary training ground called Jusenkyo. Naturally we didn't believe the story, but our master had never looked more serious in his life when he warned us never to go there."

"But Ranma and I did go there, and as you can see the curse is quite real." Genma said. "I assume you've already seen how it works." The girls nodded. "Then we'll try to answer any questions you have for us."

"Why did you go there?" Akane asked.

"It was to help my son." Genma answered. "I had hoped one of the cursed springs would help him with a certain condition he has. I wasn't completely wrong, but I misunderstood the Chinese wording there and ended up giving him the wrong curse. I myself got cursed by sheer accident."

"You wanted to curse your son?" Kasumi asked, horrified.

"I was the one to ask for it." Ranma told her, then reached to gingerly touch his back. "I thought it could get rid of my other problem."

Kasumi and Akane immediately understood what he was saying, but Nabiki didn't get it. "What are you talking about?"

Ranma removed his shirt, showing his wings and scaring Soun and Nabiki for a moment. "What the heck are those?" Nabiki asked.

"They're exactly what you think they are." Ranma replied.

"Wait, I"m confused. If this is supposed to be your normal form-" Nabiki started.

"How do I have wings?" Ranma finished for her. "I don't know, and I can't get rid of them. I thought if I went to Jusenkyo and went into the Nannichuan I could be a normal guy again, but I got Nannichuan and Nyannichuan mixed up. They sound a lot alike don't they?"

"Enough that your confusion would be understandable." Kasumi told him.

"Rest assured my son is a normal boy. He's no different than any other person you know. He's just a little reserved because of the stress of hiding his features from other people. Can you imagine how people would treat him if they found out?" Genma defended.

"That would be devastating." Kasumi said, then turned to Nabiki. "Nabiki, this information is off limits to everyone else."

"But-"

"Nabiki, off limits. Do you understand?"

The mercenary girl nodded. "Got it. Off limits."

Ranma looked confused. "Am I missing something?"

"She's just referencing a hobby of mine. I like to be in charge of the school's grapevine and I make a little money off my efforts. Kasumi here was just telling me to keep this kind of information under wraps."

Ranma looked horrified at the thought that this girl could have basically sold his secrets to complete strangers. Immediately he decided this girl was not to be trusted right away. The other two on the other hand he felt safer around.

"Dad, how does this affect the engagement?" Akane asked curiously.

Soun put his hand on his chin and thought it over. "Well this certainly complicates the issue, but I don't think it's bad enough to negate the arrangement entirely. The only question now is how to proceed."

"Why not let Ranma just get to know the three of us and let nature take its course?" Kasumi offered.

Akane nodded. "That sounds fair."

"That's reasonable, though I do think it's only fair that within six months time Ranma ought to know for sure which of my daughters he feels most comfortable being engaged to. And should he be..." Soun had to pause for a bit as the next part was difficult for him to say out loud. "...Physically intimate with any of you, as far as I'm concerned the choice has been made. Understood?"

"So basically the first to have sex with him gets a ring slapped on her finger, right?" Nabiki asked.

Soun looked greatly bothered by his daughter's rephrasing of his statement. "Not the words I would would but essentially yes. But remember, this is meant to be a warning, not an encouragement. I don't want to have to resort to such an action, but I will if that's what it comes to."

"Father, I don't think you have anything to worry about. It would be improper for any of us to have sexual relations outside of marriage." Kasumi told him.

"Maybe, but you're only human, even you Kasumi. You three are bound to be tempted in at least some form over his stay and may find yourself too tempted to wait. I'm not forbidding you three from letting yourselves have your natural urges, but rather advising you not to be so eager to give into them."

"No offense Mr. Tendo, but I'm pretty sure neither of them are going to get aroused by me anytime soon." Ranma said.

"Don't put yourself down like that Ranma." Akane offered to help him stop hating himself a bit now. "Sure, your wings and tail will take some getting used to, same with your girl curse, but I wouldn't say you're unattractive."

Kasumi nodded. "She's right. In fact you're quite attractive." She and Akane blushed remembering the sight they were given in the furo. Ranma did not look convinced and that bothered the two girls.

Akane decided to say something about it. "Ranma," She said as she stood up. "Come with me."

"Huh?" He asked, and apparently he wasn't the only confused one there.

"Akane, you're not planning on... are you?" Soun asked but found himself unable to finish the question.

The youngest Tendo gave him an irritated look. "What kind of girl do you think I am Dad? I'm just trying to be polite and make Ranma feel comfortable. Is that a crime?"

"Does it have to be done in private?" Nabiki inquired, wondering what her little sister was intending.

"I'd prefer it was so Ranma would feel more relaxed." She said before she made a beckoning moment to Ranma. Uncertain but seeing no reason to refuse, he got up and left the room with her, wondering what she had intended. He relaxed when he saw her head back to the dojo.

"Let's spar again. That helps me relax when I need it." Akane said as she got into position in the dojo center.

"Umm... okay." Ranma said, standing before her looking like he had the last time.

Akane shook her head. "No, this time I want you to actually fight back. I want a real spar."

"I don't fight girls." Ranma said matter-of-factly.

"Don't think of me as a girl, think of me as a fellow martial artist instead." Akane suggested.

Ranma shook his head. "Kind of hard to not think of you as a girl after I saw you naked."

Akane blushed as that triggered her memory of him naked too but ignored it when she got an idea. "Alright then, I challenge you to a true proper spar. As a student of Anything Goes, you can't refuse a challenge. Even ones from girls."

Ranma looked like he wanted to argue but struggled to find a legitimate reason. "What if I hurt you?"

"That's kind of the point of a spar. Besides, I'll heal. I'm not made of porcelain you know."

Ranma looked hesitant still but took up a stance in response. "If you insist."

Akane made the first move again and Ranma dodged to the side, seeing an opening in her defense which he struck at. Akane winced at the hit and backed away, surprised but not angered. She made another move, but Ranma reacted the same way by hitting her other side this time.

"You leave yourself open a lot while you attack." Ranma advised her.

"I'm a little out of practice when it comes to fighting others." Akane replied, throwing in a kick which Ranma deflected.

"Don't any students come here?" He asked, adding a punch to her shoulder which she deflected this time.

"Not really. Dad had a hard time getting back in the game after Mom died. So for the most part we rent the dojo out when someone needs it." Akane answered, delivering a punch Ranma bent back to avoid.

Using the element of surprise Ranma planted his hand on the floor and used the momentum of his dodge to swing around and hit Akane with his feet. The impact made her fall on the floor and Ranma jumped to pin her. "Looks like I win."

Akane groaned but didn't look resentful. "Alright you win."

Both teens then realized the position they were in. Akane was on her back and to win the match Ranma was seated on her lower stomach while his hands kept her lower arms pinned down by her head. In short, if they weren't clothed they would easily look like they were having sex.

Ranma jumped off her. "I'm sorry, I was just trying to win." He said, fearful of her reaction.

Akane sat up and covered herself despite the fact she was still clothed, trying to calm her heartbeat which had picked up because of the shock and excitement of the situation. Part of her was angry at him for doing such a thing, for giving himself the potential opportunity to take advantage of her. But Kasumi's advice came to her, diffusing her anger.

'Ranma's a guest so I should try to make him feel welcome, not like he needs to get lost. Besides, if he was going to do anything to me he wouldn't be reacting this way.' The youngest Tendo told herself as she got to her feet. "It's okay Ranma, no harm no foul."

Seeing she wasn't outraged, Ranma calmed down and straightened himself out. "Still, I'm sorry."

"You don't have to apologize twice Ranma." Akane told him, moving some of her hair out of her face. "Say Ranma, I was wondering something, how did I look when you saw me... you know?"

Ranma blushed deeply. "Umm... you looked... okay."

"Just okay?" Akane repeated, not liking that oversimplified answer. "Do you not like girls or something?"

"I told you I like girls. I like girls a lot. But no girl can like me. Any girl that could would likely wear all black and make sacrifices to a goat god. No thank you."

"Good, we can rule out goth girls as a preference for you." Akane commented. "So what is your preference?"

"Why?" Ranma asked, wiping some sweat off his forehead.

"Well if you are going to live here then there is a good chance you will have to marry one of the three girls here. If you have a type you like most then maybe you could at least know which one of us to start learning to like." Akane explained, not sure if she wanted to be the chosen girl or not. On the one hand she was worried this boy would maybe be a better martial artist than her, something she took much pride in and didn't like being beat at. On the other hand, he did seem to have a sort of charisma to him she couldn't explain. One that made her want to... get closer, though she had no idea why.

Ranma looked indifferent. "What's the point? I told you no girl can like me or ever will."

"Ranma," Akane said, starting to lose her patience. "Your curse is possibly curable, and you told me you weren't born with wings. So maybe you can get rid of them entirely too. You're not doomed to be alone, and for all you know someone in the world, maybe even one of the three of us, can learn to love you weirdness and all. So humor me, what kind of girls do you like?"

Sensing she wouldn't let him refuse to answer, Ranma put his hands in his pockets and decided to just tell her. "Well, body-wise I guess I like legs and breasts best, I like dark hair but I don't really care what length it is. And I like a girl who's fit enough to be a martial artist but not one of the muscular she-hulks. That's just gross to me."

Akane lightly grinned. "I feel the same way about men like that. Muscular is one thing, but when I can see your veins that's too much."

"Personality-wise I can't decide. I do like the idea of a girlfriend who shares my enthusiasm for martial arts, but I also like girls who are feminine too. It's hard to find a good balance for that." Ranma continued.

Akane blushed at this implication. "Then in your case, the best one for you is... me. Maybe Kasumi, since she does do tai chi if not real martial arts."

Ranma made an amused exhale. "So the two girls I saw naked today are the ones I'm most compatible with? What are the odds?"

"Just don't think I'm going to be doing that again anytime soon." Akane told him.

"Are we at least on good terms?" Ranma asked.

Akane smiled. "Sure, but that doesn't mean I'm going to volunteer to marry you or anything." 'Not yet.' She added, to her surprise.


	5. Chapter 4

Chapter Four

"School?" Ranma asked.

Genma nodded. "Since we're going to be here for a while, it's sort of unavoidable. Fortunately I arranged it so that you don't have to take gym yet until we find a surgeon for you."

Ranma nodded, relieved he wouldn't have to show off his extra features. "Can't we wait for after the surgeon then?"

Genma shook his head. "There's no telling how long that will take. The school won't be that patient. But luckily it's the same school Nabiki and Akane attend so you'll have help there."

Nabiki strolled by, wearing a dress-style school uniform. "Lucky for you you've been put in the same class as Akane so she'll show you where to go. Just to warn you though, Akane's a little popular with the boys so expect some people to hound you over your connection to her real soon."

"You going now?" Ranma asked.

Nabiki nodded. "I have my reasons. You better get a move on." With that she headed out.

* * *

About fifteen minutes later Ranma was following Akane down the streets of Nerima. To her surprise he was walking along the fence top instead of on the sidewalk like herself.

"Why are you doing that? And for that matter, how are you doing that?" She asked.

"I'm doing it because up here I'm less likely to be splashed by water and it's part of my balance training. Which should answer the how question as well." He told her without looking at her.

"How long did it take you to learn how to do it?" Akane asked, secretly curious about being able to do it herself.

Ranma put his hand on his chin. "I don't remember. Why? You want to do it?"

"I admit I'm curious. Can you teach me?"

Ranma shrugged. "I can try. But you'll have to start on something other than a fence first to get your balance up."

"The school's got a balance beam, I can use that." Akane mentioned.

Ranma jumped off the fence when it came to an end. "That's a start."

They walked a bit further, unaware that Genma had been watching them to see how they got along, when Ranma got hit with some water from an old woman with a ladle.

"Just my luck." Ranma groaned before wringing her shirt out a bit. "I better get a bath." She added before turning back towards the Tendo dojo.

"Hold it, there's no time for that." Akane protested, putting her hand on Ranma's shoulder to stop her.

"You think I want to go to school as a girl?" Ranma asked. "I may not want anyone to see my wings but I'm not going to go that far."

"All you really need is hot water right? I know a place where you can get some along the way. It won't take long at all."

With that Akane led Ranma to what looked like a neighborhood clinic. Ranma waited outside while Akane went to the door to request some hot water.

'If only I had fallen in the Nannichuan, then this wouldn't be such a problem.' Ranma lamented. All of a sudden she felt a hand on her shoulder and it wasn't Akane this time. Caught by surprise since she wasn't used to most people being able to sneak up on her, Ranma turned and immediately saw a skull in place of a face.

The reaction was pretty much what you'd expect anyone to do in her place. Ranma yelped and jumped away, clinging to the nearby wall while her heart pounded from the shock.

"Pardon me." The man holding the skeleton told the young girl. He was tall with short black hair and wore glasses with a blue outfit on. His age was probably anywhere between 25 and 35. "Sorry to have startled you like that. This is Betty, my skeleton. completely harmless."

Ranma still felt a bit of an adrenaline rush so she didn't drop down right away.

"Ranma, here's the hot... Oh hi Dr. Tofu. Good morning." Akane said as she returned with a kettle in hand. She handed Ranma the kettle without even looking at her, which resulted in it practically shoved in the redhead's face.

"Good morning Akane." Tofu greeted back. "You haven't been by lately. No new injuries?"

"No sir, I've been careful." Akane answered, unable to give the man eye contact.

Ranma had sneaked away to turn back without anyone noticing. 'Strange, it almost looks like she's sweet on him. Does she have a thing for older men?'

"Sorry I can't stay long Doctor but I do have to get to school." Akane said.

Tofu nodded. "Alright, have a nice day and show up anytime you need to."

Akane ran off and Ranma followed her, hoping Tofu couldn't tell he was a boy now.

"Who was that guy?" Ranma asked.

"Dr. Tofu, the local chiropractor, though he does provide other medical services. But I don't think surgery is one of them." Akane responded.

"Won't hurt to ask. If he can is he someone who can be trusted with my secret?" Ranma added.

"I don't see why not."

"He's also a martial arts expert isn't he?"

Akane blinked. "How could you tell?"

"The way he came up on me like that. The only reason I found out he was there was because he wanted me to. That's not a skill just anyone can have." Ranma told her.

"True, he's good, though you'd never think so just from looking at him." Akane commented. "He's more of a healer than a fighter though. Ever since I was little he'd treat any and all injuries I got in my training or from fights."

"How often do you get into fights?" Ranma asked.

"Not often, though thanks to this one creep almost daily now." Akane replied. "You'll see for yourself in a moment."

They reached the gate but instead of proceeding into the building Akane stopped, and by default Ranma stopped with her. Standing between them and the door like he had been waiting for them was a tall boy wearing rather old fashioned clothes instead of a school uniform. In one hand was a bokken and in the other was a rose. The boy threw the rose like a dart towards Akane, and by reflex Ranma caught it before it could hit her.

The boy who threw the flower looked like he didn't appreciate Ranma's intervention. "Who are you to involve yourself in my actions?"

"Hey, I see something thrown at a girl my first response is to catch it. Wouldn't you do the same?" Ranma calmly justified.

"I believe I asked you to identify yourself, not explain yourself." The other guy insisted.

"Name's Ranma Saotome. You the guy Akane says is bugging her each morning?"

"I am not 'bugging' her as you say. I am Tatewaki Kuno, captain of Furinkan's kendo club and the one who will win her lovely hand someday."

"How many times do I have to say no before you finally listen to me?" Akane said angrily.

"You will someday learn to appreciate my advances Akane." Kuno said.

"So that's your plan? Keep asking her nonstop until she finally says yes?" Ranma asked. "Better have a back-up plan dude."

Kuno looked at Ranma, holding out his bokken. "You are rather rude to speak to me in such a manner. Apologize at once."

"For what?"

Akane lightly elbowed him to get his attention. "Guy's got a bit of a superiority complex. Try not to encourage it."

"Wasn't plannin' on it."

"Apologize or I will fight you." Kuno insisted.

Ranma shrugged. "School's about to start and I'm not starting my first day late. You want to fight? Save it for after school unless you want to be late too."

Kuno frowned but put away his weapon. "Very well. I will find you Ranma Saotome and you will learn your place soon enough." He then walked into the school.

"The day he graduates cannot come soon enough if you ask me." Akane muttered before she went into the school, followed by Ranma.

Before they could go to class Akane had to lead Ranma to the administration office for a proper induction into the school. It didn't take long, as Genma had arranged for it the day after he arrived in Nerima while Ranma was getting more familiar with the Tendo's. The facility member at the desk confirmed the information and made Ranma an official student, telling him he could get away with not having a uniform yet but he should get one as soon as possible. Then Ranma and Akane were given passes so they wouldn't be late for class.

When they got to their room all eyes were on the couple. Akane immediately handed the teacher, a glasses-wearing man, the passes and gave him Ranma's transcript too. Then she took her seat while Ranma was instructed to stay in place, as he had no seat assigned yet.

"Everyone, we have a new student joining us today." The teacher told the class then turned to Ranma. "Go ahead and introduce yourself."

"I'm Ranma Saotome. Not much else to say other than I've been travelling a lot over the years learning martial arts in that time."

"How good are you?" One student asked.

"Better than good enough I suppose." Ranma answered, not wanting to come across as an arrogant bragger his first few minutes in school.

"Introductions will have to be saved for later. Take your seat Ranma." The teacher said, and then class began.

* * *

"Who was that boy associating with your sister?" Kuno asked Nabiki during the lunch break before either of them got a chance to eat.

"You mean Ranma? Well his dad and mine are old friends so my dad offered to let them stay with us for a while." Nabiki answered, gauging his reaction to see how much information she could reveal before she had to charge him. Kuno was a little irresponsible with his money, a trait she liked to take advantage of, but the downside to that was he was often just as irresponsible with what he spent it on.

"And?" Kuno asked, certain that wasn't the entire story. To his credit he was right.

"And what? Are you afraid some new guy is stepping on your turf?" Nabiki challenged. "If you want to know more, try asking him and Akane directly. But if you bother asking them, try actually listening for once Kuno-baby." She then left to go eat. 'I probably could have made some money there, but my gut's telling me not to make problems for Ranma right away. If a fight breaks out and Ranma's good enough to pummel Kuno, I'd rather he'd not have a reason to include me in his anger.'

* * *

At the same time Ranma and Akane were on the school roof, eating away from prying eyes. Because Ranma was the new guy, not a lot of people were going out of their way to include them in their established cliques, and Akane told her friends she was trying to make Ranma feel less alone until he had more reactions with other students. So therefore privacy here wasn't difficult to obtain.

"So that guy from earlier is trying to date you?" Ranma asked, referring to Kuno.

Akane nodded. "Yeah, but he's not my type. Even if he was, he ruined any chance of me saying yes a little over a month ago."

"What happened?"

"It's a little hard to believe. You see, Kuno-sempai has a bit of an ego to say the least. He's wealthy and a prominent member of one of our clubs here. Not to mention he's what a lot of girls consider eye candy so I think he sort of overestimates his own importance here. Anyway, for some reason at an assembly, he came up to the podium and told the entire school that he decided no one was allowed to date me unless they defeated me in a fight first."

"Seriously?" Ranma asked, sounding skeptical. "Where did he get that idea?"

Akane shrugged. "No idea. Whenever I asked him he said it was the only proper way courtship of me should have gone. I haven't gotten a single straight answer out of him so I've stopped trying. Even Nabiki can't get an answer, and if she can't nothing short of a government agent could. The one good thing is that the rest of the school had the sense to not go along with his set-up. If they had I'd basically be harassed every morning by a horde of men."

"Why hasn't anyone stopped him yet?" Ranma asked. 'Surely someone could do something. Her father, a school official, somebody.'

"There have been efforts, but Kuno just doesn't want to listen to reason. It's like he's now more in this for the challenge, the more obstacles in the way the more he wants me."

"Maybe that's why he tried starting up a horde in the first place, to create an obstacle to overcome." Ranma mused. "As a martial artist I understand the desire, but creating your own obstacle almost defeats the purpose of your progress."

"Odds are now he'll see you as an obstacle to defeat." Akane warned.

"At least he's a guy, then I can just beat him up when he tries."

"Why? Are you saying you wouldn't do the same if a girl fought you?"

Ranma sighed. "I try not to fight girls. I was taught girls are supposed to be protected, not fought."

Akane scoffed. "That's stupid. There are plenty of girls out there that have no problem fighting men."

"Oh I know. I encountered a few in China." Ranma interjected. "I said I don't like fighting girls, not that I can't. A dojo owner I met in China on my way back here helped me with that."

Akane raised an eyebrow. "How so?"

"I was passing by for a time and he learned of my refusal to fight girls, period. He told me that was an exploitable weakness. If one of my enemies learned of it they could easily get a girl to fight me on their behalf and I'd lose because I'd refuse to fight back. At the time I had reason to believe it but I asked what could I do about it. He then instructed me in a martial arts style specifically designed to be used on girls."

Akane had to admit she was quite curious. "How?"

"This style is sort of like a combat version of Shiatsu. I use it against women hitting specific pressure points on their body that don't exist on the male body, or at least wouldn't have the same effect. It can be used to hurt, but it's real purpose is more to disable them so they can't fight me and I can use that time to ensnare them or something so I win. I was a bit hesitant but I took his word for it and have been practicing it since. I just haven't been able to use it."

Still curious, Akane put aside her lunch and stood up. "Then show me this."

"What?"

"I want to see how it works. Give me a demonstration. But don't make it last long. We've still got class after this."

"I don't think-"

"Would you rather wait until you have no choice but to use it against a girl?" Akane cut him off. "At least this way you'll know ahead of time how effective it is and what needs more work."

Ranma closed his eyes. 'She's right. Shampoo could still show up in Japan though I hope she doesn't. I did learn this mostly to defend myself against her, but other girls could show up before or even after Shampoo does so I should see how much I've learned.'

"Alright Akane, just stand still. I'm told this doesn't last long, only a minute or so but in that one minute you won't be able to defend yourself." He warned. Akane just nodded. With that, he began swiftly hitting some points on her body in an order she couldn't identify.

After a few seconds Akane felt a strange new sensation flood her entire body, causing her to fall to her knees and breathe heavily. 'This doesn't hurt at all. It feels incredibly nice. Too nice. Oh Kami-sama I feel... horny. Wait, that's it. That's what this does. It makes a girl so horny she can't keep fighting the guy, instead she wants to ravish him or be ravished by him.'

"You okay?" Ranma asked, concerned as he knelt down and tried to help her back on her feet.

"Fine! I'm fine." Akane insisted, blushing up a storm, his touch not helping her arousal die down. 'Damn, right now all I can think of is ripping his clothes off.' "Ranma, what exactly did that dojo owner tell you this did to girls?"

"He said it ensured I could keep them from fighting me without hurting them." He answered with complete honesty, albeit naive honesty. "He also told me he hoped I enjoyed having it. I just thanked him and left, confused by that last part."

'So Ranma doesn't know what this does?' Akane asked herself, feeling her forced arousal dying down. "Well Ranma, if what I experienced was anything to go by, he wasn't lying. And if you're still new to this, I wonder how wonderf... effective this feels when you get better at it." She blushed again, surprised at how much she enjoyed experiencing this. "What's it called?"

"He called it the Master's Touch."

"Try to be careful with it in the future." Akane warned. "And if you need more practice, let me know so I can help." She added, surprising herself again with the knowledge she wanted to experience his instant-arousal technique again.

_Two notes to make this chapter. First, here the Hentai Horde never existed because the school had enough common sense to realize Kuno's claim had no validity. Therefore, Akane does not have that 'I hate men I hate perverts I will never be a pervert' attitude some stories give her. Second, the Master's Touch is pretty much just like the juuken from Naruto except it's meant to make girls too horny to fight back, (obviously not created with pure intentions in mind which will be revealed later on) but Ranma is currently under the impression it just weakens a girl's battle aura without causing them any pain. This story is call NAIVE Incubus for a reason after all. _


End file.
